Well, I don't know what all the fuss is about?
I have just spray painted my collapsable captain's spyglass in aluminium paint and use it while wrapped in two sports ice packs for cooling and the results are outstanding!
Even water cooled my Telrad!
Seriously though Trevor, that is one hell of a scope!..............more like something from NASA.
Congratulations!....... and I hope you don't loose too much sleep waiting for Mark's super mirror.
Regards
Rob.
Thanks Rob, never thought of water cooling the Telrad, pretty radical idea . The longer Mark takes to finish my mirror the more I think about just how good it will be. It will be ready when its really ready.
Quote:
Originally Posted by [1ponders]
Beautiful work Trev, really stunning. I cant wait to see what you are going to turn out with the new mirror. I can imagine you are very excited. But are you sure there isn't something wrong. That tiny tiny tiny camera attached to the filterwheel couldn't possibly be turning out the great image you are achieving now. It is amazing how small they are making those things these days. How long before it going to be just a chip and an adapter and a lead??? wow
Thanks Paul, yep, pretty amazing just how small the Flea3 is and its sensitivity & frame rates are pretty incredible.
Quote:
Originally Posted by icytailmark
some day i hope i can have a telescope that big in a dome. Fantastic work trevor you really know your stuff.
Thanks very much Mark, it helps a lot having an engineering background from my work on the mines. I think if you set your mind to it there is always a way to achieve what you want, good luck with it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Afro Boy
Watching this thread with interest. Wonderful work so far Trevor.
Thanks Carl, the next stage of development will occur when my new primary is finished.
Quote:
Originally Posted by AstroGuy
Hi Trevor,
Wow!
That's a very impressive piece or work. I'm also dying to see what images that beast will capture.
You are truly a Master Astro Craftsman!
Thanks very much Eugenio, it has worked out quite well so far being able to use FRED with the new secondary and old primary to sort out things such as the fine adjustment system that I designed to adjust the secondary. I have now had several months experience imaging with this new aluminium tube and have become quite familiar with its thermal characteristics and have been able to fine tune the running time of my Peltier cooler and the current that works best.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cfranks
A really fine piece of work. What is the overall weight of the 'scope?
Charles
Thanks very much Charles, I have not weighed the new tube but it is very easy to handle and is very much lighter than the heavy cardboard tube it replaces. I easily managed to carry the aluminium tube down to my shed to work on but needed help from my son to bring the old cardboard tube down from my observatory. Meade list the weight of the optical tube as being 100 lbs. As I mentioned in my writeup at the start of this thread, I have been able to do away with a 10 kg counterweight so the aluminium tube assembly with mirrors installed is at least 20 kg lighter than previously.
Just out of interest, how are the images from the Meade Mirror?
Hi Tim,
Have attached an RGB from March 6th UT which was the morning of March 7th local time, it along with 807nm IR data is also in my latest thread in the Planetary Imaging forum.
Have attached an RGB from March 6th UT which was the morning of March 7th local time, it along with 807nm IR data is also in my latest thread in the Planetary Imaging forum.
Regards
Trevor
I cant wait until you get the new mirror Im also feeling better about my decision to get a Meade scope
Have attached an RGB from March 6th UT which was the morning of March 7th local time, it along with 807nm IR data is also in my latest thread in the Planetary Imaging forum.
Regards
Trevor
Hi Trevor,
Superb image of Saturn! nice work!.
I hope you don't mind me picking your brains .
Did you happen to capture any images of the same subject matter (Saturn), using the pre-upgrade secondary mirror and the same optical and hardware combination? Are there any on the this site? I would very much like to compare the two, or is it not possible?. I would also be very interested in the wave error specs of the original secondary and new secondary mirrors, if possible. If it's too much to ask I understand.
Did you happen to capture any images of the same subject matter (Saturn), using the pre-upgrade secondary mirror and the same optical and hardware combination? Are there any on the this site? I would very much like to compare the two, or is it not possible?. I would also be very interested in the wave error specs of the original secondary and new secondary mirrors, if possible. If it's too much to ask I understand.
Regards...
Hi Eugenio, if you have a look on my website any images of Mars, Saturn & Jupiter prior to about the end of November will be with my old setup.
Planetary imaging really is dependent on the seeing and with good seeing most well collimated and focused scopes will produce nice images but with very good optics, in good seeing the images willl be most excellent.
Cheers
Its been a while but I continue to fine tune and develop "FRED".
Right now I await some sort of relief from the weather. I have not captured data since June 24th, this being the longest run of crook weather I have experienced since imaging my first electrical storm on Saturn back in Jan 2008. I should add that the last 4 weeks also included a trip to Sydney to collect my new primary mirror from Mark Suchting and that from Sydney we continued on to Parkes for the 2011 CWAS Astrofest where I had the honour of giving a presentation on "Amateur Involvement in the Science of Astronomy & The Great Saturn Storm of 2011".
I must say that I really do appreciate the exceptional standard of Marks work and I consider it an honour to now have a world class custom made primary from him.
I have included some images of and about my new primary.
Image 1. Includes the detail on the blank from Newport Glass in California.
Image 2. Is of the mirror mounted in my 27 point cell with a temperature sensor fitted to the edge of the mirror. This mirror is 2mm larger in diameter than my original and required some minor adjustment of my mirror cell.
Image 3. My new mirror mounted in my scope prior to screwing my Peltier cooler back onto the cell. A second temperature sensor can be seen mounted onto the rear of the primary.
After fitting "FRED"s new eye I was unfortunately struck down with a severe gastro bug and have yet to have first light with FRED. First light just has to be with Saturn and I hold out hope that even if the Jet, which has been parked overhead for a month, does not move, at least a hole will appear in the clouds.
The new tube with the new Antares secondary & 17yr old Meade primary installed on the GEM in my observatory
Trevor, ......................please....... ......please............repaint that ''Doeskin'' coloured meade mount to ''Telescope white'' or ''Skywatcher black''!!!
Trevor, ......................please....... ......please............repaint that ''Doeskin'' coloured meade mount to ''Telescope white'' or ''Skywatcher black''!!!
Hi Rob,
The GEM is certainly not made by Meade or in fact bare any resemblance to anything made on a production line. It was designed and built by me a very long time ago and works very well. There is much more to it than is visible to the eye and it was painted with whatever I could find in my shed at the time.
It is fitted out with dual axis drives made by Peter Mellander of Anssen Technologies, Peter also did the electronics for the drive corrector and the whole system has been super reliable over the last 15 yrs or so.
Funnily enough, the colour of the mount doesn't seem to have any effect whatsoever on the quality of the data produced by the scope, at least that I have noticed thus far. Of course I am holding out high hopes for what this scope will produce now with the primary from Mark.
That is fantastic what you are doing there.
Fred sure is going hitech.
What about the old starfinder ? is it put away in a corner somewhere?
Will catch up up soon.
That is fantastic what you are doing there.
Fred sure is going hitech.
What about the old starfinder ? is it put away in a corner somewhere?
Will catch up up soon.
Cheers Kev.
Hi Kev, yep, been pretty snowed under but when I lose Saturn which will be in another couple of weeks, I sure am looking forward to taking the LB out under the stars. Have a new Firey from Sydney who is really keen to go observing. Reckon we should organize the old crew and wander out somewhere for a barby & observing night.
Hi Kev, yep, been pretty snowed under but when I lose Saturn which will be in another couple of weeks, I sure am looking forward to taking the LB out under the stars. Have a new Firey from Sydney who is really keen to go observing. Reckon we should organize the old crew and wander out somewhere for a barby & observing night.
Cheers
Trev
Count me in !!
I think my az bearings are siezed up....
Cant wait.
..............more like something from NASA.
. The longer Mark takes to finish my mirror the more I think about just how good it will be. It will be ready when its really ready.
Of course I am holding out high hopes for what this scope will produce now with the primary from Mark.
